A good Excuse to miss Valentine's Day
by loozy
Summary: Today is Valentine’s Day and he is offworld and from the looks of it he won’t be back until the 15th, and where is the fun in taking out your girl for a fancy Valentine’s Day dinner when it’s not Valentine’s Day any more? CC, DV & SJ implied


**Title:**: A good Excuse to miss Valentine's Day  
**Author:** **loozy**  
**Summary:** Fourth, today is Valentine's Day and he is off-world and from the looks of it he won't be back until the 15th, and where is the fun in taking out your girl for a fancy Valentine's Day dinner when it's not Valentine's Day any more? There is no fun,and though Cameron knows he's lucky to be in love with someone who knows where he works, and he's pretty sure that he will be forgiven, it doesn't make the whole thing any easier.  
**Category:** het  
**Rating:** PG-13  
**Characters:** Cameron Mitchell, Carolyn Lam, Samantha Carter, Daniel Jackson, Vala Mal Doran, Teal'c  
**Pairings:** Cameron/ Carolyn, Daniel/ Vala, Sam/ Jack  
**Word count:** 2095 words  
**Warnings:** not really, though there is a bit of violence, though nothing specific, more implied  
**A/N:** My first SG- 1 fic... I'm very nervous about posting it... Thanks goes to my two betas, **katiuniverse** and **peachypenumbra** who helped me with the characters and the grammar... Cheers to both of you loads of hugs  
**Feedback:** Appreciate all kinds of feedback... I'm a sucker for it, really... But please, leave a comment...

_"But in the end the love between the Princess and the boy was undeniable and true. And, over time that love would see them through anything. Magical things happened to them, things they couldn't explain, much like love its self. And, like most fairy tales the Princess and the boy lived happily ever after... at least I hope they do."_

_One Tree Hill, 3x21_

When Cameron was 7, he watched _Star Wars_ for the first time. He loved the concept of going out to the stars to discover other galaxies, meet other species. _Star Trek_ he could never really warm up to, but _Star Wars_ he loved.

When his mother was out with her girlfriends, he and his father would sit down and watch the old episodes, while his father explained all about flying to him. On the weekends, he would take Cameron to the hangar of the military base where he worked, and with the help of old planes that were used to demonstrate to young pilots how to fly manoeuvres, Cameron's mother, who was an engineer, would show her son the inner life of planes.

Cameron soaked it all up, and when it came to deciding where to go to college, he picked one where he could study mechanical engineering. He already knew that he wanted to join the Air Force and become a pilot, but he had too much of his mother in him to not want to know how things worked.

After getting his diploma in Mechanical Aerial Engineering, he signed up with the Air Force, and to this day he hasn't regretted it. No matter how hard it was at times, or how depressing, and despite the fact that sometimes he had to go months without getting laid well, until he came to SGC, and that the Iraqis and Afghanis didn't like them as much as they had hoped, he loved flying, and he loved his job--still does, in fact.

Now, things are vastly different from before.

First of all, he gets laid on a regular basis.

Second, he doesn't say _get laid _anymore. It's more, and he is man enough to admit that he is completely smitten and in love and would do anything for his girl to make her happy.

Third, after two years of commanding SG-1, he has the feeling that he is slowly gaining their respect, and that they've realized that he is more than the happy- go- lucky- guy that he uses as a front. There is more to Cameron Mitchell than meets the eye, and while he has concealed that side of himself as some kind of self- protection, he now lets his guard down every once in a while.

What's even harsher is the fact that Vala has apparently caught onto Valentine's Day and has spent the whole trip making goo- goo eyes at an oblivious Jackson, and Sam and Cameron are so frustrated about the fact that Valentine's Day is a bust that they are close to sending the two of them back through the 'gate so that they can get it out of their system. Because that whole unresolved sexual tension might be all fine and dandy when you can do something about it, but they can't and the fact that two of their team members can…

Apparently he has also started to ramble in his mind now, and he already knows who he can blame for that tendency…

As though Jackson wasn't annoying him enough today already…

Fifth, venturing out through the event horizon and getting to know different cultures can be satisfying on a purely intellectual level…

Sixth, fighting the Orici and Priors is the most frustrating things Cameron has ever attempted, and even though it feels as though they are fighting a losing battle most of the time, he is too much of a bloodhound to let go… Their universe, their galaxy, their very existence is threatened, and there is no way that he will let the looming devastation happen while he is still alive and breathing and able to fight.

Seventh, the next time they have a movie night, they won't watch a cheesy love movie with a catchy soundtrack because he can't get the instrumental music from _Love Actually_ out of his head. To have three women with a large knowledge of movies among their group can be deadly in situations like this. Yet, Cameron won't ever admit that he likes _Love Actually_; if he ever did, he would never hear the end of it from Teal'c and Jackson, while the women would probably do some weird female thing that he has given up on trying to figure out. The four women in his life are way too confusing.

Eighth, he is bored to tears, literally, because the sand blowing around and about them is making his eyes tear up, and he can't see a thing no matter how much he squints, and he has been standing here for close to two hours, nothing has happened, and if he were Jackson, he would be inside where he could see and have something to do, and he should stop using 'and' in his rambling.

He should also cease rambling at all.

Ninth, tea is much better than coffee.

Tenth, people have finally stopped referring back to General O'Neill's time as SG-1- leader.

Ten points are quite a nice number, so he stops at 10 and turns towards Teal'c who is guarding the entry with him. Sam and Jackson are inside doing their brain- thing, Vala is inside with them for whatever reason, and there is a shadow moving towards them at alarming speed.

Teal'c has seen the form, too, and they move back inside the building. Cameron quietly informs the three of the possible intrusion, then he sneaks a peek back outside.

More than one shadow. Several, in fact.

He releases the safety of his gun and waits, Teal'c mirroring his actions.

Nothing sweetens your day more than a nice shoot- out when you are in the minority and running out of ammunition. Add to that a surrender and imprisonment, throw in a beating, and it couldn't be a better day.

No, Cameron doesn't feel bitter or sarcastic at all.

It gets a bit hazy after the shooting and beating, but somehow he and Teal'c were rescued by the other three, and Cameron is as always quite happy that the brainiacs of the crew can not only be brilliant, but also handle themselves with guns. Vala counts, too, as she is intelligent and good with weapons.

But that's not the point.

And actually, Cameron can't really make a point because he is too out of it to really get what is going on around him. He can feel Jackson hauling him along for the ride, and possibly also Sam, or it might be Vala. They are all quite close as they make their escape, and he can hear all of their voices around him, even Teal'c. Big guy sounds much more together than Cameron at the moment.

Zats are zizzing all around him, combined with shooting from the Ghould's staffs, and their own guns, and then there's a stinging sensation in his left hip. He stumbles, there's pain in his right leg all of a sudden, he's going down-

"This is not at all how I pictured us spending Valentine's Day."

Cam would like to understand what that means, but the pain radiating from his hip down towards his ankle is too much to take and he hisses, his breath coming out in short uneven puffs. There's a roar in his ears that rises in intensity the shorter his breaths become. Through the hazy mist he knows much too well by now he can hear sharp commands issued by a voice he knows very well, and he'd like so much to say something sweet and romantic, but there's this matter of oxygen depriva-

"He is allergic to roses, did you know that?"

"Isn't it usually the man who gives the woman roses on Valentine's Day?"

"Yeah, of course, but he can't even buy those. Told me so before you left, just so that I wouldn't be disappointed to not find roses somewhere on the base, like in my office or his quarters."

"What did you find?"

"What makes you think that I found anything?"

"It's Cameron."

"Right… A bouquet of lilies; they're my favourites. And chocolate. I love him, but he's an evil man."

Soft laughter. He would like to comment but his tongue feels as though it weighs a ton, and besides, sleep is so much more tempting.

"How is he doing, Carolyn?"

"Better. His fever has sunk, and the infection is almost gone. He should be lucid in a day."

"How long will he have to stay here?"

"Couple more days. I don't want to release him too early. And even after that, bedrest for at least a week. That shot in his left side wreaked havoc with his internal organs. Crutches for at least two weeks."

It's a sign that he feels better when he manages to groan from beneath the oxygen mask and to pry his eyes open so that he can squint at Carolyn and Sam, noting the twin expressions of relief before he succumbs once again to sleep.

"Cam?"

Turning his head towards the speaker's voice costs effort. Prying his eyes open is out of the question.

"Sam?"

Wow, is that really his voice? Sounds like sandpaper, only rougher.

"How you feeling?"

"Like… crap… Car'lyn?"

"I'll get her. Just try and stay awake, okay?"

Retreating footsteps. He can hear machines beeping around him, and takes a quick guess that a couple of them are hooked up to him.

Returning footsteps. He makes an effort to open his eyes, and to his surprise even manages to.

"Cameron?"

"Hey… a… Happy Valentine's Day."

He tries out his lopsided grin but finds that it takes too much muscle coordination and concentration, so settles for a light twinkle. Carolyn's face hovering over his is the definition of relief and also a bit of amusement.

"Well, you're a bit late."

A quick look around and she leans forward, throwing decorum to the side for a change, pressing a kiss to his forehead.

"Valentine's Day was last week."

"Oops."

That's all that he can say. His eyes feel like drooping again and he knows that he won't be able to resist sleep's pull for any longer.

"Cam, try and stay with me for a couple more minutes. I need to check you over, then you can go back to sleep."

"Tired."

Boy, he sounds like a petulant child. Does he care? Nope, not right now. He just wants to sleep. But for Carolyn, he'll try, if only to make up for her missing Valentine's Day because of him.

As soon as he can, he is asleep again.

The next time Cameron awakes, he can actually stay awake long enough to hold a semi- coherent conversation with the person by his bed, though he doesn't remember the person when he wakes up after that and Carolyn tells him that he might have stayed awake longer than before but still managed to fall asleep mid- sentence.

Inspired by this, he decides that another round of sleep is in order.

Then it gets better.

The more often he is awake, the longer he remains conscious.

The pain lessens, the coherence returns, and the doses of painkillers subside with each day.

After one more week in the infirmary, Carolyn lets him out of her sight long enough for him to wander around the complex. It's not as if he could escape her anyways, what with him being on crutches and thus not the quickest or stealthiest person in the universe. Or this galaxy. A pity, really, because he just loves to sneak up to Carolyn from behind and give her a good scare.

It might be evil, but hey, she loves to poke and prod him in the not- fun way, so this is his way of taking revenge. It's less painful, too, and should demonstrate the consideration he has for her.

After two weeks, he takes Carolyn out. Or rather, she takes him out, seeing as they have to take her car because he still can't drive. But he's paying, so in the end, he's taking her out, and really, none of them pay much attention to such petty details.

It doesn't matter.

They have their Valentine's Day- dinner.

They might be late, but who cares?

They certainly don't.


End file.
